Living Nightmare
by Zips50
Summary: Can the gang survive life after high school?
1. Chapter 1

Prologue

It was a cold, snowy day in the worst living place imaginable, Akron, Ohio. Two former students of the University made their way through the dreadful town. There was little life on campus, which is now the usual in a world like this. As Kelsey was waiting inside her 1998 Chevy Cavalier, trying to escape the brutal wind and snow, Anna was filling up the tank with gas that they had stolen from their neighbors. They might feel bad if they were alive to notice that the gas missing, Kelsey thought. It had been a rough few months for the two girls. As a matter of fact it had been for every living soul on the planet. While most families were celebrating their thanks by gorging themselves with unlimited amounts of food, watching football all day, and finishing with shopping to avoid the families they were already tired of; there were more important matters happening in the nation's capital. The morning of that Black Friday took a different meaning as the first virus inflicted human took to the streets to rip out the hearts of innocent people. Nearly two months later, the country had been turned upside down. Cities burned, people died, and there were far too many zombies than you could count.

Perhaps the most dangerous places to be in during a situation like this is a college campus. However, the two girls moved to the safety of their friends' house off campus, with boarded up windows and plenty of supplies to make it. Or at least this far. Their supplies had been dwindling, and that is why they have come here, on their way to the closest Walmart or Giant Eagle. _I just pray there's anything left, and that's if we even make it,_ Kelsey told herself.

The opening of the passenger side door broke Kelsey of her terrifying thoughts, as Anna started to place the gas container in the back seat of the car. "We better make this quick, you know how Jake and Zach will be wor-"

And that was all she could get out. She couldn't even let out her scream as the monster took her from behind, tearing out the flesh from her shoulder with a menacing bite. Perhaps she was too shocked to scream, but Kelsey wasn't. A shrill, deafening scream took hold of Kelsey before she even realized what she was doing. She knew she had to get away, to leave her best friend to die in the cold hands of one of her former Zips classmates.

She punched it, sending both Anna and her attacker flailing outside of the vehicle. But fate wasn't on her side either that day, as the snow sent her reeling into the nearest house. After her screams there had been more zombies coming after her, and with her head smashed against the windshield there was little she could do to stop the inevitable.

"Oh well", Kelsey said aloud, "I was lucky to make it this far".

Chapter One

Tommy Pickles

It has been two weeks since the supposed "zombie attacks" in Washington D.C. Since that time there has been cities all across the United States with reports of these creatures, with the exception of Southern California. Tommy had seen the news and the videos on Youtube, but he couldn't get himself to believe that they were zombies. "It's just a bad drug or something. The government will get a cure and get it to stop, just like usual", he told his younger brother Dill.

"No way Tommy, these things are real, and they're here to stay, just like in the movies and video games". No surprise that he would be the one to have the strongest belief in the zombies.

The whole gang was meeting up today at Tommy's house, and the two brothers were cleaning up their rooms in advance. Not that they wanted to, however. It was their Mother's insistence that they should clean. Although the two seemed like men, they were still just 17 and 16, with at least another year with his parents for Tommy.

The past week had been a real drag, as neither of the two had been allowed to leave the house. At first it was great, of course, because there was no school. But they had really missed their friends. That's why this visit from Chuckie, Kimi, Phil, and Lil was all Tommy could think about all day. How is a guy supposed to clean his room with that on his mind?

Just as that thought left his mind there was a knock at the door, and Didi let in the four teens. Tommy ran full speed to the steps, then slid down the hand railing, although he only made it three quarters of the way before losing balance and falling flat on his face on the floor at the feet of Kimi Finster. The smile Kimi gave him was all he needed to make his face flush red, but the laughter of the other kid's in the room would have done the job on its own. "Uhh, hey guys", Tommy said with an embarrassed grin.

"Hey Tommy, nice fall" Phil laughed. Chuckie and Lil also made their bad jokes. But Kimi just smiled, helped Tommy get to his feet, and made sure he was okay. "Hey don't ask if he's okay!" Phil yelled, "It's his fault for falling, so we get to laugh at him".

"I think three of you laughing is enough, Phil." Kimi and Phil always fought. _And Kimi also sticks up for me_, Tommy thought with a small smile forming on the mouth of the eldest Pickles.

"Actually Kim, make it six", said Dill, laughing along with his parents behind him. That sent Tommy into more of an anger than his previous embarrassment. His friends could make fun of him, but not his parents. Especially his super weird brother Dill.

"Come on guys let's go to my room. We have a lot of catching up to do". And with that Phil, Lil, Dill, Chuckie, and Kimi made their way up the stairs, with Tommy following. Like always, he made sure he followed the girl of his dreams.

Kimi Finster

"No homework, no going to church, no running errands for your parents..." Phil kept going on and on about the things that were better about not being able to leave the house. "We can still play catch in our house.."

"Phillip we're not really _allowed_ to play catch in the house. Mom caught us three times this week, and said if she even finds another baseball she'll shove it up our-"

"Hey it's your fault she catches us Lillian, you're the one that throws like a girl!" This would go on for a while, Kimi knew. So instead of trying to stop the fighting, which she knew was impossible, she would go on in her dark thoughts until the fighting was done. Kimi was not the most normal of kids. In fact none of them really were. In short, Tommy was the tech nerd, always filming everything under the sun for the school. Plays, sporting events, even the most boring things like orientations and graduations. Anything that he could film and later edit was the bee's knees for Tommy Pickles. And to the surprise of no one except for Didi Pickles, this did not make him popular in the least. Chuckie was the stereotypical nerd. Very smart, both in class and also with computers. He wore glasses and had shaggy red hair and an endless amount of freckles. But that didn't complete Chuckie. He was also known for having some definite anger problems, whether it was necessary or not. This helped ignite some of his bullying, as he never really could keep his mouth shut to those who bullied him. Once a bully had continuously shoved him into his locker, but instead of being quiet and waiting for the bully to leave, Chuckie just kept egging him on. His extreme shyness he had mostly overcome, but to what cost? Lil was perhaps the most normal of the group, as sad as that may be. She was an excellent soccer player, as she always had been. She was not one of the jocks, however. She put her time in on the field, but when that was over she came back and did all the weird things that her friends did. And that leads to Phil and Dill. As the two may have overcome their extreme grossness, they still did enough to merit having very few friends. And the two rarely left each other's sides. Whenever they weren't playing the awful Call of Duty games and listening to people screaming, they would do other things to pass the time. During these times they never would invite the rest of us, so you could only imagine what they did. It's just a good thing they've never been caught, even by us. As for Kimi, even she would have to admit that she's a different character. She dresses different than everyone else, listens to different music, and enjoys "strange" hobbies. Most consider her sort of punk/hipster, but even those outcasts don't include her in their clicks. Really the only people that get her are her friends. _And even they sort of just put up with me._

"What do you think, Kimi?" She heard Tommy say as she broke out of her thoughts. Well this will be a tough one to get out of. Guess I'll just tell the truth.

"Uhh sorry I was zoning out there. What is the question?" She asked.

"I told you she wasn't listening Tommy" Chuckie said with a scolding tone.

"Calm down Chuckie. Kimi, we were talking about our plans for tonight" Tommy spat back with an evil grin that would curl your hair. _Oh this can't be good_, Kimi thought to herself. He continued. "So tell your parents we're all staying here tonight. When our parents go to bed it all begins".

"What begins?" Kimi asked stubbornly.

"Well if you'd stop interrupting him he'll tell you" Said Phil. Kimi wouldn't let his tone start another fight, so she just looked to Tommy.

And Tommy looked around to the other four members of the group with a knowing smile. One that may have actually been more evil than the previous one, before replying, "_The fun_, Kimster".


	2. Chapter 2

Angelica Pickles

"Okay thank you, bye." Said nineteen year old Angelica to the campus police officer that let her pass. The campus had been put on lockdown, so anyone that wanted to enter or leave had to go through the inspection of the police department. And there had been far too many leaving. After waiting in the traffic for over two hours, Angelica could finally leave for home. Well, after another few hours of Los Angeles traffic that is. After cursing softly she turned up the radio and kicked back. _This is going to be a long day_, she thought.

This had been a very interesting freshman year of college for beautiful young woman. After her last few years of high school went far better than planned grade-wise, and a surprisingly excellent SAT score, Angelica was accepted into the University of Southern California. The money was never a problem, as expected, and she was ready to start her life anew. Away from all her friends and family by a couple of hours, Angelica was finally independent and free to do whatever she wanted and whenever she wanted. She partied often and made a few friends quickly, including a few guys she became fond of over her three month trip to college. She had not been back home since leaving in late August, not even for Thanksgiving a few weeks earlier. But these were desperate times. In the wake of the virus spreading across the United States, USC has become one of the last remaining universities to shut down shop, at least temporarily. For as much as Angelica loved her independence she did miss some of the people back home. Her parents a little bit, as they did love her and it was reciprocated, as much as they fought over the years. Her friends from school as well. And maybe she even missed her cousins and their weird friends a little bit as well. In a perfect world she could go home just long enough to have some fun, and then this whole 'epidemic' would be over and she could go back to her college life, which admittedly was the best time of her life.

And what a life it had been. Throughout the years she had changed, as everyone does. She had become nicer, but still had the ego and intensity that she always had. As hard as she tried, she would still occasionally snap on someone. Then she would immediately feel bad and apologize. Most people would let it go because she was trying, especially guys. Pretty girls like that could always get away with stuff, and pretty she was. Turning heads everywhere she went, Angelica fit right in with the beauty of Southern California. Her flowing blond hair matched with her bold blue eyes, eyes that had that perfect almond shape, kept her right in the game for nearly any guy she wanted.

The line of traffic moving sent her out of her many daydreams. It was finally moving at a steady pace, and before she knew it she was in the driveway of her parents house. Drew and Charlotte had hardly changed, always busy and never really having enough time for her. As she walked into the house her parents rose from the kitchen table and each gave her the saddest of hugs. This is why I'll be at Aunt Didi's most of my time here, she told herself. And after a few hours of talking she took the short walk over to her Aunt and Uncle's house.

As she walked up the driveway she noticed how very quiet and dark the Pickles' house was. "Well it is one in the morning." She said to herself, aloud. It took four rings of the doorbell before a presumably sleeping Stu opened the door. But as he saw her all his tiredness left him.

"Angelica!" He yelled, beaming with excitement. "Didi come see who's here!", and gave Angelica the biggest of hugs and led her into the kitchen. After getting another huge hug from her Aunt, they all sat down in the kitchen and had some hot chocolate. Didi was getting some cheese and crackers when Angelica asked about their two kids. Stu seemed a bit surprised that in the fifteen minutes of conversation Tommy or Dill hadn't come up, but answered anyway.

"Well beside being bored this past week they've been good. Both have been getting good grades as usual." He said that last part with an extra proud smile. "They're actually just up in their rooms right now asleep, we should wake them up."

"Oh well I wouldn't want them to go through all that trouble." Angelica said with a grin.

"Oh don't be silly, Angelica." Didi said. "I'll go get them now." She left after she sat down some cheese and crackers and refilled their mugs with hot cocoa.

"Their friends are staying over anyway. They're probably still awake, listening to us right now." Said Stu, and they both laughed. But they were not laughing any longer after hearing a loud scream from her red-headed Aunt upstairs.

Phil Deville

"Oh Tommy this is easily the best idea you've had in quite a while, my friend." Phil yelled, perhaps a bit too loud.

"Shut up Phillip!" Lil yell-whispered, "We need to be quiet, you never know what could be out here." She finished that last part with a wicked smile and glared at Chuckie.

"I keep telling you guys I'm not scared, no matter how hard you try." Chuckie used to be scared ridiculously, but he was surprisingly keeping his cool here. _I don't like that_, Phil told himself. Perhaps the biggest reason for that was that he actually was a bit scared. The graveyard could be a very creepy place sometimes, especially with the threat of the virus spreading around. The possibility of fighting zombies over graves sent shivers through him. But Phil couldn't play the scared one, his job was to be the careless funny one, so that's what he did.

"Alright guys I almost have my camera ready." Tommy said. It had been a long walk from Tommy's parents house to the graveyard, probably a half hour at least. Tommy had put his creativity to work yet again, as this plan may have been the best according to Phil. They would start at the graveyard, moving their way down into the town. As they went they would each go down one by one. They didn't have the effects or actors to pull off real zombies, but they could try something like this. Phil hoped it would turn Tommy into the star director he hoped to be one day. Of course he really doubted it.

"Okay so Chuckie you will be the first to die." Tommy told Chuckie. Then you can be the full time camera man.

"Sounds good to me, I'm a terrible actor." Chuckie said frowning.

"Well just make sure you're good enough to pull off dying. After that will be Lil, Dill, and then Phil. Then it'll be just me and Kimi." _Of course he'd put those two last_, Phil thought.

"Ah so it's a love story?" Said a smiling Lil. _Dammit I'm the one who's supposed to make jokes and make people feel awkward. _And that's exactly what it did to Tommy. But Kimi played it well.

_"Haha_ Lil very funny. Are you done?" Lil nodded, still wearing that evil grin. "Okay so let's get this over with." Kimi had made her opinion felt strongly that she didn't want to do this at all. But when the group outnumbers you four to two you don't have much of a choice. Poor Finsters. The first scene went as planned. Six high school teenagers walking through a grave yard, gossiping their hearts out. They loved to pretend to be the popular kids that care about stuff like that in their films. When all of a sudden Phil made a sound like he thought a zombie might make. The girls screamed, and Chuckie pretended like he was being torn to shreds. The rest ran away and into the night. The scene ended with Chuckie pulling off a perfect crying scene as Tommy moved the camera to make it seem that something was eating him, before Chuckie died and the screen would go black.

As much fun as their one scene had been, it would be cut short by a phone call by a certain cousin of two of their members. Tommy answered. "Hello... uhh yeah I'm just at home, you know with the gang... yeah Chuckie, Dill, Phil, Lil, and Kimi... uhh yeah I guess so. Alright see you then." Tommy hung up and looked at his friends. "Looks like we're taking this film into town sooner than we thought." He was then pestered with 'Who was that', a 'What do you mean?' and a few others, but instead of answering each individually he set the scene. "Let's walk while I explain." They started to pack up and hurry along the dirt road, heading towards the town. "So that was Angelica. She's back in town." That was followed by several groans. "Calm down calm down. We haven't seen her all year. She wants to meet outside of The Java Lava."

"Oh fuck her" cried Phil. _Perhaps a bit too harsh, _Phil thought. But that was before the choir joined in.

"Yeah we're having fun." Said Kimi.

"It's probably some sadistic trick of hers anyway." Lil said.

"Guys calm down. She just misses us. Let's go, it could be fun." And after that they were off, and in no time they were in front of the Java Lava, along with six furious parents, and no Angelica.

Chuckie Finster

_Oh just great, just what I needed. All of our parents staring at their lying children in public. Although it is about three in the morning, so there's just us. As if that will save us from our parents wrath. Just like usual Tommy gets us into trouble. And the worst part is that Kimi and I didn't even want to do this, and we'll get in the most trouble._

Chuckie was broken out of his thoughts when Betty Deville started. "How could you kids? We've been too scared to let you out of the house, let alone go through the woods when God knows what is out here."

Didi took the next turn. "We were worried sick about you kids!" There was no kindness in her voice.

"But-" Kimi tried saying, but was cut off by a livid Betty. Kimi had always been the cute member of the group. She could always sly her way out of trouble with her fake sweetness, especially when it came to her father, Chaz. But this was not Chaz. He was in the back of the group, and had obviously been crying recently. As a matter of fact, all of their parents were shying away in the back of the group. The mothers were leading the attack. Kira joined in, and finally after fifteen minutes of scolding they were allowed a moment to speak. It wouldn't be Kimi that they looked upon this time. Nor their leader Tommy, for some reason. Lil looked far too ashamed to speak. It actually seemed like Dill was in some other world, and Phil was actually snickering, and that was not the approach to go with when speaking to angry mothers. Instead they were looking at Chuckie. He took the hint.

"Look, it's not like we're bad kids. We never sneak out of the house like this." That lie was a good start, he thought. "But we have been so grounded here lately, and we couldn't stand it. Even I wanted to get out and do something that I shouldn't be doing. That alone should be enough to show how much we needed this." He could feel the argument shifting. But before he could continue, he felt something real. Something awful. An earthquake. It was pretty common here, but this was a bit different. As people lined into the streets and onto the sidewalks, everything seemed normal to Chuckie at first glance. Perhaps it was a worse earthquake than normal, but there was something else. A noise. Was that... screaming? Yes, definitely screaming. It was getting closer. A few more seconds before they could see objects moving towards them from down the street. They weren't moving fast, but the terror filled the group all the same. There wasn't one person on that street that was curious as to what was coming towards them. They had seen the news. From all over the east coast they had come, tearing apart families. As it spread across the USA they still would not believe it could reach them. But it has. Finally.

"Everyone inside!" yelled Betty.

"Wait!" Phil yelled. "Are we in trouble?" Oh even during a time like this Phil still couldn't help himself. Everyone piled in and Chaz shut and locked the doors and shut the blinds.

"Okay we need to stay perfectly quiet." Tommy said. The next series of events would traumatize even the most stone hearted human. Chuckie didn't know if it was fifteen seconds or fifteen minutes, but it felt like an eternity. They couldn't see what was unfolding outside, but they heard all that they could bear. Shrieks of humans and the sound of flesh being ripped out from the teeth of the dead. Children crying as their parents told them to run. Run where? Where is a child supposed to go in a situation like this. He just watched his mother get eaten alive. What could he possibly do? And then Chuckie realized the answer. The pounding at the door sent shivers down his spine and made his heart stop for a full second.

"Let him in!" yelled Kimi, before Kira grabbed her and held her down. Everyone glanced at each other sadly, but each knew what the answer was. They let him in and they're all dead meat. And that's just what happened to the boy as Chuckie's thoughts turned into tears. And he was not alone. After a few seconds each of the six kids was with one of their parents, crying the worst cries of their lives. The noise outside had not even died down before the knocks at the door came with more frequency. And it didn't take an expert to realize that they weren't coming from others like themselves. Shadows of the dead covered every inch of glass in front of the store.

"That won't last for long." Said Stu. "We need to move. Out the back door. Now!" Tommy and Phil led the way, followed by the girls, mothers, and finally the fathers. Only one remained. "Dill, now!" yelled Stu. But Dill was still seated on the floor, cross legged.

"No." Said Dill without looking up. He was as calm as a cucumber.

"Dill they're com-" Stu was cut off as the first zombie broke through the glass.

"Stu, we have to go!" yelled Chuckie. The rest of the group had left out the back door, waiting for the two pickles and the Finster boy.

"Not without my son"

"Dad, it's okay. It was meant to be this way. We aren't meant to fight it." And with that haunting remark Dillon Pickles walked into the walking buzz saw that was menacing the earth.

"Noooooo!" cried Stu. But it was too late. Chuckie grabbed Stu, who had fallen to his knees, and urged him along to the back room just in time. Phil and Lil were waiting and barred the door. It seemed as though the Pickles were about to embrace, but there was no time for that.

"We need to move." Said Betty. Everyone nodded and began their run. They ran three blocks down the road, no one even asking where they were going. Once a mob was shown in front of them they turned to the left, but saw a mob there as well. It didn't take Chuckie long to realize they were surrounded.

"So this is the end, huh?" Said Tommy, who actually churned out a hysterical laugh.

"Well," Said Phil, "Not quite Tommy." As he found a way to open up the sewer grate and hop down into the darkness, and the rest followed.


	3. Chapter 3

Chapter 3: Breaking Away

Kimi Finster

"I think we can stop here." A completely exhausted Kira Finster said as the gang reached a dense section of the forest. Dark green leaves of the enormous trees combined with numerous amounts of bushes and shrubberies should make this an ideal location to finally get some rest. It had been a long journey from the sewers in the middle of town. Luckily they lived in this time so each had a cell phone with a good enough flash light. They were also fortunate that the sewer water was nearly knee high. Tommy and Phil led the way. They had really proven themselves so far, not only with the way they found the way here, but simply in their courage and bravery. After several hours in the tunnels, Tommy found a safe escape that led into the forest. From there they have gone roughly two miles into the loneliness of the forest, and that is good enough for the night.

"Seeing as how the kids haven't had sleep all day, we'll take the first watch." Said Howard. He hasn't said much so far, but this was music to Kimi's ears. And by the looks of it music to all of the kids ears. The five remaining kids slept cuddled with each other under a tall shrub. It wasn't very comfortable, but it really didn't matter at this point. Chaz, Kira, Stu, and Didi also slept while Betty and Howard kept their eyes out. It quickly became apparent just how tired they were. Chuckie and Lil were asleep immediately, and after a few minutes it seemed like everyone else joined in. Except Kimi. She was beyond restless, and just laid in between Lil and Chuckie staring at the stars. Despite everything that has happened, the beauty in the stars still remains. Fifteen or so minutes went by before she heard the sobs. It was pretty obvious where it was coming from. After completely drowning out his feelings and helping the group get through the sewer and this portion of the woods, Tommy finally thought about his brother. A brother that he'd never see again- hopefully. Kimi gently got up, as to not wake up her friends, and went and laid down next to her dark haired friend. Before she could get a word out Tommy was up, quickly drying his tears and pretending that nothing had happened.

"Tommy it's okay, really. I was just coming over to comfort you."

"I don't need comfort Kim, I'm fine. Really."

"You do. You were so strong for everyone today that you forgot to let yourself feel. Now you can, Tommy. Now I could go over there and pretend to sleep if you want. Or I could help you. Talk to you."

"Walk with me?" He said with a sad grin.

"Well I think I've walked enough today," She said with a laugh, "but I guess I could do that."

Sneaking past Howard and Betty was easy enough. Despite Betty being completely on the ball, Howard was completely asleep on his side of the camp. A simple walk was all that was needed anyway. Just to get away from the group so that Tommy could spill his feelings, and then return and get some sleep. When they were finally out of hearing distance Tommy turned and hugged Kimi, and started crying. Not the quiet sobs from the camp, but instead these were deep emotional wails. Kimi did her best to calm him down, but it took several minutes to do so. "You know Kimi, there's no one that I'd rather have here than you. You know that right?"

"Why do you say that?" Kimi said with a laugh.

"You're the only one that cares enough to help me right now." Tommy said with tears still rolling down his face.

"I'm the only one that had an ounce of energy to help you." Kimi objected.

"Let's go away. Leave them."

"Tommy that's crazy talk. We need them."

"No we don't. We're the strong ones. They'll hold us back."

"Well Phil and Lil are both clearly better suited for this than I am."

"Phil is too stupid to make it. Lil...well perhaps you're right about her. But she wouldn't leave."

"Yeah, and neither would I Tommy." Tommy looked like he'd been slapped in the face. He looked to his feet for comfort, but only saw his muddy Nikes. "You've had a pretty crazy day today. You just need some sleep so you can be back to normal."

"I really don't need you of all people calling me crazy right now." Before Kimi could object Tommy went on. "I need to get away from these people. A huge group will be easily picked off. But a strong guy can last forever by himself. Or with his best friend.." Tommy gave Kimi a smile that she'd never seen him have. It was a smile that would land him the Joker role in the next Batman movie.

"Tommy you're really, really scaring me."

"It's so weird, since you're so hard to scare." And for a moment the two were back to normal. Kimi loved scary movies, and Tommy loved making them. This could be a turning point in the conversation, and she could finally get some sleep. But before she could finish her thought Tommy planted his lips firmly onto Kimi's. It was short, hardly more than a peck. But it was heaven to Kimi. Went Tommy pulled away he whispered "Boo", smiled at Kimi, and said "get used to being scared Kimi. It's all there will be. And you could be scared with or without me." Without waiting for a response Tommy turned and took off, full speed in the opposite direction of the camp. There was no way that Kimi wouldn't follow Tommy, even if it were to her grave.

Lil Deville

"Wake up! Wake up! Tommy's gone! And Kimi!" Betty yelled, waking up everyone. Lil jumped straight up and gathered her few things. The group was all set after a short time. It was just nearing noon, at least that's what Lil thought. Of course there were more important matters to discuss. And that was taking place while she thought. Where would Tommy and Kimi go? Why would they leave? How did they get past the parents on patrol? That was the main arguing point between the parents at the moment.

"Hey knock it off." Said Lil. "This isn't the moment for arguing. We have to find them. Now, Phil and I are the perfect team. We'll go search for them. If we get into trouble we'll be fast enough to run away. You guys stay here. Make weapons and other things that we'll need." After another series of fighting everyone agreed that that could be the best idea. They would find their friends, while the others would make sharp knives out of sticks and small branches while planning their next course of action. It was a bulletproof idea.

Except it wasn't. How could they possibly find Tommy and Kimi in this forest? It's huge, and their plenty capable of being long gone by now. Phil and Lil had ran for what seemed like five mintues before Phil stopped.

"Sorry Lil, but this is pointless. They're long gone, and probably in a different direction."

"You would just give up on our friends?"

"Me? Face the facts Lil. Tommy and Kimi left. They weren't taken, or else we would have known. They snuck out to get away from us, so they could face this world as husband and wife. They gave up on their friends, and now it's our turn."

"Oh stop it Phil, maybe they just went to get water and they'll be back at the camp."

"It's over. We need only to worry about ourselves now. Just like they did."

"What are you saying?"

" I'm saying we keep walking. Away from the group. Maybe in the direction Tommy went. Maybe not. But we need to get away." For as good as she knew Phil, she knew that his mind was made up. And he was stubborn, and she couldn't change his mind. But she could alter it, perhaps.

"At least have Chuckie come with us." She told him.

"No. Chuckie is too soft. Just us until we find them." _Looks like I have one choice, brother or family. Why did we have to be twins? _

So they set off. Two twins against the world. Phil in his normal hoodie and jeans with his dark Nikes, and Lil wearing the same except her hoodie was a dark green rather than black. Their hair was nearly identical. Even at seventeen you could hardly notice the difference between the two Deville's. They needed protection, she knew. They took a break to do what their parents were supposed to be doing at the moment. They found some branches and sticks, and used their knives to make them sharp, hoping they can be used as spears. Thank goodness their mother bought them the knives for their sixteenth birthday, and they never leave home without them, just like she told them. After each made about ten they were back on their feet. They stopped at a nearby stream to get a drink. "We'll be needing some food at some point today, Phillip." She added some edge when she said his name.

"We can always eat bugs." He said with a smile. It actually made her laugh. Who would have thought that something could do that in this world. In fact, she couldn't remember the last time she even broke a smile. They continued walking for several hours, never finding any human activity, either alive or dead. What they did find was rabbit, however. Nice, plump, and grey, with plenty of meat on it. That they could tell just by looking at it. Even if they were picky at a time like this, which they obviously weren't, this would make a perfect dinner. The hunt would be the hard part, though. The rabbit could not have been more than fifteen yards from the twins, eating something too small to be seen. The time was perfect. Without making a sound Phil stealthily moved upon the rabbit and slammed his spear right through the creature's neck from behind. Lil made a small involuntary squeal, and covered her mouth in shame. Phil laughed.

"It's okay Lil. I feel bad too. But we have no choice. We need to eat."

"It was just so cute." She said. They both shared a quiet laugh as Phil moved towards her. "We could make a fire here."

"Well it may be dangerous and bring on people, or even worse, those.." He hesitated for a moment.

"Zombies, Phillip. They are zombies."

"I'm just not really sure if we should call them that."

"Well that's what they're called in the movies, and we'll stick with it. No need to complicate things." He nodded and began collecting sticks. When they gathered up enough twigs, Phil pulled out his trusted lighter from his pocket.

"One of the advantages of doing.. well, illegal things." He said with a smile.

"Well you could still have a lighter without doing that." And again they both laughed.

Maybe this was right. Lil had begun feeling much better when she was alone with her brother. They fought, sure, but the good moments outweighed the bad. They worked well together. Perfectly, you might say. She still felt guilty, of course, especially as she dug into that delicious rabbit. She knew there was no way the family behind them could have caught something so great, and most likely Tommy and Kimi were sleeping hungry tonight as well. _I really hope we can find them. _

Angelica Pickles

"Angelica, wake up." She heard Susie say. "I think they've passed."

"That's a relief." Angelica said, always with that sarcastic tone. The past night had been a long one. It started when she left the Pickles' home and walked across the street to her old friend Susie's. They actually had quite a bit of fun over the first hour or so. Catching up and even gossiping a little when possible. Susie always hated to, and it was a struggle. Her parents and even the rest of the family were away for the night. _Away forever, probably_. But she wouldn't dare say that in front of Susie. The zombies had ravaged the neighborhood. She could tell that just by looking outside. Her cousin's house across the street was torn apart, windows shattered, and the front door even ripped off it's hinges. The Carmichael home, however, was as good as new. Perhaps it was because of the preparation that her father had done. He boarded up all of the windows on the ground level, while also putting in steel doors. He was a clever man, while also having quite enough money to pay for the fortress. But for as much he'd done, he wasn't here. They were visiting family in San Francisco, and according to Susie, against the will of her father. Susie had only stayed because she was sick, but she was over it now. Now it was just Susie and Angelica in Susie's old room. "That sun sure is bright." She said as she tried to look at her friend that was standing over her. "And I could go for some food."

"I guess we could eat. But we should probably check to see if everyone's okay."

"Susie get a hold of yourself. No one's okay. Now let's eat." Although the electric was out, the stove still worked, as it ran on gas. The food wouldn't be good for much longer though. And that was music to their ears. They enjoyed eggs with sausage, ham, and bacon. Toast was out of the question, so they ate it with regular bread. "You know with what people are going through right now, I'd say not having toast isn't that bad."

"Right." Susie said. She was sad, and you couldn't blame her. She was alone. Well, Angelica was alone as well, but she never really had the family influence that Susie had. They were as close as it got, and now it was just her.

"So what are we gonna do today?" Angelica asked, hoping that Susie could somehow snap out of her mood.

"I wanna see if anyone else in the neighborhood is okay." That's Susie for you, always thinking about others. Damn her, Angelica thought.

"Oh fine, let's go see if my damn parents are alive. Would that make you happy?"

"I guess happy is a relative term, Angelica."

"What does that even mean?"

"Oh nothing. We'll take these bats for protection. It's only a few houses down. We should be okay."

The trip was a big waste for the two girls. There was no action on the walk, which you could say is a good thing. They didn't even see her parents when they got there, and there was no trace of them leaving. In the hour they were gone it had been like they walked through a ghost town. When they returned home, they found themselves very bored. They talked, played cards, and watched the leaves blowing around outside. But soon dark came upon the two, and there was nothing to do but go to bed.

"Angelica, it wouldn't be weird if we slept together tonight, would it?"

"Susie don't be ridiculous, we slept together last night."

"Well the zombies were around last night and we were scared. But the thing is, I'm still scared. And lonely."

Angelica laughed, "I said it's okay Susie. Just don't try anything." She smiled.

But Susie didn't return the smile, but instead said, "It would just be nice to have your company for as long as possible, as I escape this living nightmare."


	4. Chapter 4

Chapter 4: Trouble Awaits

Chuckie Finster

"So what do we do now?" Asked a deflated Howard Deville. Howard always had a high-pitched, whiney voice that brought out the innermost anger in you. His frazzled dark hair and weary eyes showed how visibly beaten the man was.

"We have to find them." Answered Didi. She had spent the past three or so hours sobbing uncontrollably. _She's losing it, and it's completely understandable_, Chuckie thought. How Chuckie had kept his cool this long surprised everyone, himself most of all. Phil and Lil's search for Tommy and Kimi has so far been unsuccessful, meaning either they are still looking or...

Chuckie was interrupted from his horrifying thoughts with more arguing, except this time he heard his name called. "Huh", Chuckie asked. He didn't even know who said his name.

Whether Stu said it first or not, he did this time. "How are you holding up there Chuckie?"

"I'm okay".

"How can you be okay?" Asked his father, Chaz. _Why wouldn't I be okay? When all hope is lost there's no reason to lose your shit. Just let it happen and get it over with, and maybe have some fun along the way_. It was a strange way of looking at things, Chuckie knew. But seven adults with no food, and no way of getting food. _The four strongest members of our group have left us, and how can I blame them? It's every man for himself now._

"I just know we'll get through this." Chuckie lied. He knew the opposite.

"You're stronger than we knew," said his stepmother with a smile, "but the rest of us our more concerned."

"That's right," said Betty, talking for the first time in minutes, possibly a record for the loudmouthed mother. "We need food. There's a stream for water here, but the shelter is weak. And most importantly we have no way to protect ourselves." They all knew that if a pack of zombies strolled through their makeshift camp it would be the end for them all.

"Well I have a pocket knife" said Stu.

"So do I." Said Chaz. "And it has other things, like a can opener and a nail file."

"Sounds great," said Betty, "if we ever find food we can use that. Until then we have to catch our own."

"Yeah let's just sneak up on our prey with our three inch knives." Stu let out a sickening laugh. "We're done here guys. The kids saw it when they were with us. They led us here, and they knew we were holding them back. It's survival of the fittest now, and that's certainly not us." A sad silence followed his speech. A silence that screamed 'you're completely right'.

Chuckie took this time to look to the earth for answers, and he found something crawling close to him. About the size of the fingernail on his thumb, Chuckie picked up the best looking beetle he'd ever seen. There was a lot going on through his mind during this time in his life, a lot going on in the new world around him, and a lot of memories of his friends that had left him...and still a little bit of beetle guts stuck in his teeth.

Phil Deville

"Run!" Yelled Lil, as they ran full speed.

"They're fucking cougars! We can't outrun them!" Phil yelled back.

"Just do it!"

"They're everywhere, just let them kill us!"

"No!" A voice yelled. But it wasn't Lil's. It was Tommy's. Phil turned just in time to see Tommy get mauled by a cougar. Phil began to cry, and he stopped running and fell on the ground in the fetal position.

"Phil," Lil asked, "Are you okay?"

"Tommy's dead." He said, still crying.

"Tommy? How do you know where Tommy is?" _What? Didn't she just see him die too_? "Phil, are you okay? Phil?" And that's when Phil woke up. "Phil?"

"Huh? Oh, hey Lil. Bad dream, I guess." He said, as he struggled to get to his feet. "Is there any rabbit left?"

"Nope. Ate it all last night. Man, that was good. So you dreamt of Tommy?"

"Nope." He lied.

"It's okay. I dreamed about Kimi and Dil last night. It was us three and they made me watch a scary movie. You know, one of those alien movies that Dil likes. And it was scary so Kimi was into it. But we were at Tommy's house, in the basement. And when I started watching the movie I started seeing monsters coming from all the dark crevices of the basement. And when I went to tell Dil and Kimi they were zombies and were coming after me. That's when I woke up and heard you moaning."

"That sucks. I just dreamed that Tommy and I were hanging out."

"Phil, you said Tommy's dead and started whimpering." She always saw through me.

"Okay we were being chased by cougars. I had a nightmare, are you happy?"

"It sure helps," She said with a smile and punched his arm.

Today would be a long day, Phil knew. A long trek through the woods while trying to find food and water. Hopefully they could find a town or at least some people. _Maybe even a girl_, Phil hoped. They picked up their handmade spears, their knives, and their packs and headed out into the wilderness. "Think we'll find them today?" Phil asked.

"No." She said with a sad smile.

They walked for hours without finding a soul before anything interesting happened. In between two trees was a handmade hammock made of strewn twigs and branches, covered with leaves. It didn't take long to realize that this wasn't some survival bed, but instead it was made before the world ended by some bored hiker. They decided to take they break here, and even tried laying in the hammock together. That plan failed miserably, as the hammock broke. Roughly an hour later they found a small spring below the shade of the trees. They drank and half-heartedly bathed themselves before moving on. Food was scarce for the two on this day so far. They saw no rabbits, nor any squirrels or other potential lunches. So they trekked on and on, until they reached a road that came in between the forest. It was nearly dark, but they found a car sitting quietly at the side of the road less than a football field away from them to the north. "Should we look at it?" Lil asked him with a cracking voice. They hadn't talked much, as they tried to keep as quiet as possible for safety purposes. So talking for the first time in eight hours had done something to her usual beautiful voice.

"Yeah." Replied Phil.

"Are you sure?"

"No. But there could be food. Or people that need help."

"Or it could be a trap."

"Please, this is zombies versus humans, not humans versus humans anymore."

"What? You watch The Walking Dead. And you've played The Last of Us."

"This isn't a T.V. show or video game, _Lillian_. Let's go." And so they went. Each had a spear in one hand, knife in the other, ready for any attack of zombie or man. They got to the car. Lil looked in the window and let out a small scream, and Phil heard a small scream from inside the car as well. Phil reared up ready to fight, but Lil laughed as the door opened and a girl came out and hugged Lil. _Who is that and why is she hugging Lil? Wait a second, that's a girl. A Girl!._

"Hey Emily, I'm so glad to see you. Phil, this is Emily. We played against each other in soccer every year and became somewhat friends."

"Well, I wouldn't say friends." She said with a laugh. "More like rivals." Then they both laughed.

Phil tried to join them, but he just made it awkward. "Nice to meet you," he said. _Nice to meet you? No usual Phil charm? _He quickly realized he wasn't himself around this girl. She was different. She had short, dark hair that complimented her dark, brown eyes. She wore a jacket with yoga pants, with bright orange Nike's. She was very pretty in the face, and her build was very athletic. Although when she turned to pick up a piece of bread to give them, he realized he liked her backside just as much as her front. Her personality was interesting as well, Phil thought. She was peppy, extremely nice on first glance, and was not afraid to make fun of Phil even though they had never met. During their quick conversation she called him awkward, gay, and playfully called him a stud.

Phil quickly tried to end the conversation, however, "We need to get off the road. Is your car okay?"

"Yeah", she said, "I was jut sitting here in the middle of the road waiting for you two to come." _Sarcasm, eh? I like that. _

"So we'll leave it. Bring all you can. We can fill our packs too. What do you have?"

"Just some bread and water. Oh and I stole two pistols, a compound bow, and an axe from my dad." She could apparently sense the concern in their eyes. "Oh, don't worry, he died." _Oh, that's better._ They loaded up. She gave Phil the axe, and gave both Deville's the guns. Phil gave her his spears in return for the axe. "The bow is mine, though. Ever touch it, I will kill you." They looked at each other and laughed, but she broke it, "I'm serious."

"Uh yeah, we get it. Let's go find our friends." Phil said, _Before you kill us both_.

Tommy Pickles

It was completely dark when they reached the outskirts of the next town, nearly fifty yards from the edge of the forest. Their hope had been that the zombies hadn't reached this place yet, but after barely even glancing at it they realized that wasn't possible. They could see windows smashed in cars and houses and businesses, as well as doors completely taken off. Zombies lined the streets like they were in the middle of a parade, although they didn't keep formation. _Strange creatures_, Tommy thought, _they kind of just stand there. Move a little bit every couple minutes. Wait for noises or sights that will make them search for food. Go back to just standing there_. "They're kinda lazy, ya know?" Tommy asked Kimi, who had a look of boredom as they watched them from behind a large tree.

"What?" Kimi asked.

Tommy laughed. "Never mind. We can't go into town, obviously. But I'm starving." He couldn't remember the last time they'd eaten.

"I bet our parents and friends aren't hungry." She said angrily. She had been in a bad mood for a while now.

"I bet they are. They need to feed each other. We need to feed just us two." He looked at her for a moment, and really looked into her eyes. Beautiful things they were, dark just like her hair; and intense, just like Kimi. She averted his gaze and started walking towards the town. "Hey what are you doing?"

"Sneaking into town to try and find food." She said nonchalantly.

"Well were you going to ask me?" He said, his voice becoming angrier every time he spoke.

"No." She replied. He reached out to grab her, but she quickly slapped him away. "You didn't give me a choice to come here, so I'm not giving you one."

"You didn't have to follow me here, you know." He said.

"And you don't have to follow me." She said, and as she walked away he could have swore she gave him a playful smile. Although it was dark, it may have been an evil grin. _Touché Kimster, touché._

"Fine. But we have to be fast. And quiet." And before he could say anything else she was stealthily running towards the first building she saw, an abandoned gas station. She was fast, too. He had a real hard time keeping up, especially since he was trying his hardest to remain quiet. And boy was she quiet. She moved like a shadow in the dark night. She quickly was across the street and past the gas pumps, and finally beside the front door. Tommy finally caught up. "Timeout, timeout," Tommy said, exhausted.

Kimi let out an angry sigh, "Fine, but hurry."

"Alright, I'm good. How do we get in?"

"Um, the front door." Kimi said in a matter of fact tone of voice.

"Okay okay, no need to be mean about it."

"You're right Tommy, I'm sorry for being mean. Oh by the way, how is your best friend Chuckie doing?"

"Ouch. Fine, be mean. Just go." She climbed through the broken glass, and Tommy followed. They realized that while the store had been looted there was still some stuff they could use. They filled their backs as best they could. Each took several bottles of Mountain Dew and Pepsi, as all the water and alcohol was taken. There was no hot food available, so they each took several granola bars, packs of crackers, and Snickers bars. "This looks good for now. Let's get out of here before something happens to.." But before Tommy could finished he saw it. He looked to Kimi, but her eyes were already on it, and her jaw was on the floor. "Do you see what I-"

"Yes!" She squealed, and ran full speed for the pizza sitting behind the cash register. _That's weird, a full, uneaten pizza behind a cash register. And cracked open just so we can see it. This could only mean_.. Kimi no!" Tommy shouted, but it was too late. Four large men wearing all black came out from behind the counter. The first was white, very tall, perhaps 6'4", with dirty blond hair and evil blue eyes. Following him were two even larger black men. Very similar looking, they each looked like they could block for an NFL running back. Finally, the fourth man was old and small. He was completely bald and was smoking a cigar. "Get them." He cried as the blonde thug grabbed Kimi and took her. She fought and kicked, but it made no matter. Tommy attempted to help her but the other two grabbed Tommy and took him in the same direction as Kimi. When they got to the back they went through the door, where a van was waiting for them. The three men stripped Tommy and Kimi of everything except for their clothes, and through them in the back of the van, while the old, bald man went to the front seat and started the van. The others jumped in the back of the van as he pulled out and went on their way.

It wasn't a long drive to their destination. Tommy and Kimi passed the time by sleeping. They hadn't slept well in days, and they wouldn't now either. A short nap was all it was before the men dragged them out of the van and into and old, beaten down house that was surrounded by woods on all sides. The old man led them through the front door, down one hallway and into a door on the left. When he opened the door he moved aside as the two black men shoved Tommy and Kimi down the steps that led to what seemed to be a normal basement. After a long and painful fall down the steps, the two kids each groaned as the old man at the top of the steps let out a laugh and closed the door.

As soon as the door shut Kimi leaped into Tommy's arms. "It's okay, it's okay." Tommy said, caressing his friend, before they heard a shrill, heart piercing voice from right behind them.

"You really don't know where you are now, do you?"


End file.
